LEAVIN’ – Graham Barham & Wiz Khalifa Written By Joel Reuben Pauley
If you’re expecting a standard country song out of any new Graham Barham release, you’re going to be disappointed. Clearly, fiddle and steel aren’t the focus of his vision. In fact, his sights appear to be set somewhere closer to the work of his latest collaborator, Wiz Khalifa. “LEAVIN’” seems to be a pinnacle moment for Graham, with this “dream duet” coming rather early in his career. As an imitation of an early 2010s pop hit, it’s kind of effective. Still, Graham throws in his “Annie Oakley” and “Daisy Duke” references where he can to maintain the heart and soul of his “club country” brand. Wiz, being the megastar that he is, gets away with a lot of silly lyrics like “Might eat some edibles up” and “I told her I like how her jeans fit (‘super good’)”, making half of his verse about how high he’d like to get with a person of interest and the other half about a sneaky link. As far as the song’s message, that’s actually quite relevant; Barham’s main point in this track is that if a girl is equally as inebriated and interested as he is, there’s “no reason” for her not to go home with him at the end of the night. Graham also notes that the woman he describes has a figure that makes her “mama pray” and makes “wrangler proud.” While all the intentionally goofy phrases come off pretty corny, and the production is wildly overstimulating, the overall product is still pretty entertaining. At the very least, this is a decent hype song for a pregame or something of the sort.
3.1
I Liked Loving You – Luke Bryan Written By Max Buondonno
If there’s a world in which Luke Bryan can kick out a meaningful ballad again, we’re not living in it. As an artist who used to strike a fair balance between party tracks and somber songs in his catalog, Bryan has strayed into both styles, to the point where you no longer sound like you care about the actual words you’re saying. In “I Liked Loving You,” he harps on a romance that was once fruitful and fulfilling, but is now too troublesome to partake in. Without a clear causation or concluding thought in the track, it relies too heavily on vague issues he has with his partner and never dares to sound vulnerable or sincere. Instead, it feels like another rudimentary song that’s on his album to break up the vibes during its runtime. When equipped with an emotional piano in the background, Bryan has been known to kick out several songs that resonate and feel like they mean something. But in the case of this song in particular, he sounds like he’s trying to balance his output. It’s lazy and uninspired, but at least it sounds like a Luke Bryan ballad for people who still look for those on his albums.
5.8
On The Road – Eric Church Written By Joel Reuben Pauley
Being in the professional country music scene for over twenty years now, Eric Church has seen it all. His new song is all about the wild life he’s gotten to live and the many milestone moments he’s experienced. “On The Road” is pretty much a thank-you letter to those experiences, expressing gratitude for moments like playing iconic stages alongside heroes and legends such as Kris Kristofferson, George Strait, and Willie Nelson. Just from the piano intro, you can get an early sense of the purpose stitched into this track. There’s so much packed into every note and word of the song, and while it’s not a tune that many people will relate to, it’s something his fans have seen the other side of for decades, sharing a similar appreciation for the chief’s life as an entertainer. Towards the end of the song, Church imagines the day when he’s “a name on a wall,” and someone else will pick up the torch and “ride in a thousand towns” just as he did. There’s a soulful beauty to the sound of every instrument and vocal in this song, but Eric’s heartfelt sentiment is what makes it truly special.
8.1
I Believe – Darius Rucker Written By Noah Sneath
You can learn a lot about a person based on their relationship to Bob Dylan’s 1975 breakup album/masterpiece/maybe the greatest album of all time, Blood on the Tracks. If Darius Rucker loves that album as much as he has said in interviews and in the third verse of “Only Wanna Be With You,” then he’s a music fan who finds a strange beauty in the eloquent expression of deep pain. “I Believe” not only pays direct homage to the Dylan record (“when you see the train wreck coming / but you can’t rebuild the track”) but also shows how the same pain can be channeled into something more hopeful and nonfatalistic. In a culture increasingly dominated by the Gen Z idea that optimism is cringe, “I Believe” stands out as a kind of relic of late-20th-century values that the same generation now pines for and celebrates through its clothing choices and musical sounds. This song has an earnestness and no-frills approach that has always made Mr. Rucker’s music so compelling. However, the production choices lean toward the melodramatic and unfortunately overshadow what would otherwise be a tastefully simple and uplifting song. Darius Rucker has quietly made some great music in the 2020s, and although “I Believe” doesn’t quite reach the musical highs of songs like “Never Been Over” (all-time slammer, by the way), it’s an honest expression of a beautiful idea from an artist continuing to prove he still has something to say.
6.8
Overrated – Warren Zeiders feat. Bellah Mae Written By Max Buondonno
Would-be sex symbol Warren Zeiders has shared another taste of his forthcoming album, No Brakes, with his latest single, “Overrated.” A collaboration with newcomer Bellah Mae, the song pleads to ignore the advice of others and love a girl no matter what form it takes. The concept is simple enough, but Zeiders had to take things to, like, 100 with its production. Is there a reason he has to use his gritty, scratchy, screaming voice beyond the fact it’s a Warren Zeiders song? Is he aware that the production somehow sounds like Black Sabbath made “Beat of the Music” by Brett Eldredge? Does he know Bellah is seemingly trying to impersonate Tate McRae the best she can? It’s a confusing, stylistically baffling song that meshes what could be a tender admission of affection with heavier country-rock than anything we’ve heard from Brantley Gilbert in a while. But that’s about what we’ve come to expect from Zeiders recently: overcrowd your eardrums with screams and bombastic electric guitars and see how far that takes you. As it turns out, it can’t take you far enough not to sound like you’re grasping for a style that makes any level of sense.
5.2
Can Of Worms – Wade Forester, Treaty Oak Revival Written By Adam Delahoussaye
“Can Of Worms” is maybe the most Treaty Oak that Treaty Oak has ever been, and at times it can be hard to discern compliment from criticism in that statement. Regardless, the brand is dialed to eleven, from the noxious riffs to the vulgar translations of twice-over tropes all the way down to the cover art that looks like a pinup poster from hell; the track is unmistakably a product of their environment. Like a lot of their most potent numbers, this performance is so overpowering that it masks the fact that a lot of the writing just isn’t up to snuff with the edgier acts they’re so often grouped with. A lot of the best lines here are doled out by Wade Forester, who slips in a few innuendos and tongue-in-cheek takes on infidelity that manage to raise eyebrows despite the wall-to-wall feedback the band is battling him with. Still, Treaty Oak is at its best when they cut to the chase, like when they tell the other woman that what’s waiting at home “can’t fuck me as you can,” but then again maybe stability is worth the sacrifice. Sometimes what should be serious subject matter gets mangled into a sitcom narration with this group, but our characters still manage to feel the gravity of it all.
6.6
Same Old Blues – Waylon Jennings, Jessi Colter Written By Will Chapman
“Same Old Blues” is not exactly what one might expect to hear from an unreleased Waylon Jennings recording. For one thing, it is hardly a country song. The track is built around a deep, funky groove, with keyboards and bass doing much of the heavy lifting while Jessi Colter delivers the entire lead vocal. Originally written and recorded by J.J. Cale in 1974, the song finds an entirely different life in the hands of the Jennings family. This is really a Jessi Colter performance, with Waylon occupying a supporting role. He plays guitar, contributes backing vocals throughout, and shares a producer credit, but it is Colter’s voice that gives the recording its identity. Her delivery is cool and understated, perfectly suited to the song’s weary account of infidelity and resignation. The groove, meanwhile, is so compelling that the absence of traditional country instrumentation hardly registers. Its release is also a fitting continuation of Shooter Jennings’ recent excavation of his parents’ archives. Following Songbird, these recordings offer glimpses into the music Waylon and Jessi were making outside the records that ultimately defined them. “Same Old Blues” is particularly valuable for that reason.
8.4
Pair of Dice – Sierra Ferrell Written By Aishwarya Rajan
Sierra Ferrell continues to present herself as an artist amassing a vast following across genres. She carries the soulful undertones of the generation’s past female stars, with weathered, vintage textures and a silky smooth delivery. In her latest track, “Pair of Dice,” listeners are swooned into the highs and lows of her warm, hypnotic vocal spell before being delivered an intricate lyrical turn. Ferrell sets up the metaphor well: she likens herself to a pair of dice, pleading to be let roll on, framing life itself as a gamble worth taking rather than something to control. The intricate nature of this metaphor, from beginning to end, forges its escape from the generic. The song doubles as a life lesson, with verse two serving as a reckoning, prompting listeners to notice the good things that fill their cup and to forgive themselves for not knowing what time will tell. The track’s traditional edges balance the arrangement beautifully with fiddle and banjo, but occasionally mute the very vocals that draw listeners in to begin with. For this reason, the lyrics are sometimes lost rather than accentuated.
7.7
What’s Left to Hold Onto – Tyla Rodrigues, The Kruse Brothers Written By Noah Sneath
With all due respect to the very talented Kruse Brothers, the story here is rising star Tyla Rodrigues. The Australian country singer is one of the most exciting young talents in the genre, and “What’s Left to Hold Onto” is another impressive addition to her growing catalog of high-level traditional country and honky tonk music. Already with two duets with up-and-comers Mack Geiger and Braxton Keith in 2026, Rodrigues brings a mature, velvet timbre to her collaborations that always contributes to the success of the project. This new release is no different. The song is built around a chorus that supports sustained, woven harmonies and has a wonderful rolling shape. Each musical idea arrives, develops, and then gently tips into the next. Holding it all together is well-executed musical contrast. We hear legato vocal melodies against plucked guitar, diatonic chords followed by chromatic ones, and acoustic guitar solos set against whining electric licks in the Bakersfield Sound style. It’s like a river flowing over jagged rocks. While the composition itself is not staggeringly interesting, the vocal performances and arrangement make the recording extremely compelling. “What’s Left to Hold Onto” is a solid advertisement for two country music acts with big things ahead.
8.0
Woman to Blame – Kenny Whitmire Written By Adam Delahoussaye
A common praise of a good vocal performance is that a singer’s voice can fill up a room. Kenny Whitmire’s voice, on the other hand, is more alluring than it is commanding. It may be better suited that way, too. The singer can reel you in as he trails off on an open-ended vowel and can keep your attention with a calming cadence rather than sheer force. “Woman to Blame” is Whitmire at his most relaxed, and subsequently maybe his most dialed. He’s able to get a shoes-off, Jack Johnson-level tranquility out of his 90s-steeped drawl that’s right in the sweet spot between his skillset and his closest points of reference. It’s a love song, like most Whitmire numbers, that’s refreshingly carefree in how much of himself he seems to be giving away to his other half. The warm glow of both Whitmire’s vocal performance and the lines on the page complement each other handsomely, selling itself as a lovey-dovey dance number while being spared the dramatics that typically come in the wake of falling in love. The feeling is as in-the-moment as the sound, capturing the honeymoon phase in a bottle and making it feel like it could last forever.
8.3
God Speaks Through The Radio – Mo Pitney Written By Will Chapman
In an age of streaming, where virtually any song can be summoned on demand, there is something uniquely serendipitous about the radio. When the right song comes on, it’s because it just happens to find you. On “God Speaks Through the Radio,” the fourth release from his forthcoming Outskirts of Town, Mo Pitney builds an entire song around that idea. Written by Pitney alongside Matthew Douglas Wynn and Wil Nance, the track settles into an easy groove led by a tasteful guitar motif and a particularly effective bassline. The melody is playful and memorable, fitting the song’s uncomplicated sentiment. Lyrically, the premise is definitely more charming than profound. Pitney moves through familiar country settings such as Grandpa’s barn, a boat on the lake, and Mama’s kitchen to illustrate the many places where a radio might deliver a timely message. It is a simple concept executed with genuine warmth. “God Speaks Through the Radio” may not be particularly revelatory, but its easygoing production and country instrumentation make it an enjoyable addition to Pitney’s growing catalog.
7.1
Pawn Shop Ring – Will Backerman Written By Aishwarya Rajan
For generations, country music was defined by its sincerity and storytelling originality that it had maintained until weakening in recent years. This absence opened doors for artists to lean into Americana/folk territory, which preserves richness of vocabulary, readability, and complexity: Zach Bryan, Jason Isbell, Joshua Slone, Colin Lynch, etc. In his first release, Will Backerman, a North Carolina native, is following in these same impressive footsteps with “Pawn Shop Ring.” The young artist’s rich tone, along with rolling, mesmerizing strums, unfolds a tune similar to John Mayer’s “Heart of Life.” This story of adornment he describes feels vintage and classy, one that you go to the cinema to witness. He unravels the moments and details of their story that slowly culminated in the day he finally went to the pawnshop and bought her a ring: her eyebrows dance when she lies, and she feeds him vegetables and vitamins. A track has truly struck gold when subtle rhyming verses embellish the lyricism rather than become distracting, as though it were uncreative. Most importantly, “Pawn Shop Ring” isn’t repetitive in any sense. There’s always a new construct, a new example, or moment describing these two “forever friends.” That is a lost art in music today, and Backerman might be the act to bring it back.
8.1
